October 30, 2008

Location: Secret Spot
Entry/Exit Times: 3:30 p.m. / 6:40 p.m.
Weather: 45 degrees, mostly sunny, wind W 2 mph, barometer 30.56 – steady
Moon Phase: waxing crescent – 3%

Although the evening started out a little slow, it ended up being the best “buck” night of the season so far. I thought it might be good as I was walking to my stand and caught the strong odor of buck urine. I noticed it the other day as well, so that’s a sign that things are picking up a bit. I did bump a deer on the way in, but I couldn’t get a good look at him. I don’t like going to this stand in the evenings because it’s inevitable that I spook deer, but what are you going to do when you have to work during the middle of the day?

One of the first things I noticed upon entering my stand is the small scrape under the licking branch had been cleared sometime during the day after I left following the morning hunt. Okay, that’s several occasions now where there has been midday activity in this spot, so maybe I should take the hint? The first group of deer started to move around 5:15 p.m., and I could hear some does being chased to my right. A small buck appeared but he was acting funny, and I could just tell there was someone bullying him around. I was right. A beautiful set of white antlers appeared and I could easily make out his eight perfect points from about 100 yards away. I gave a closer look with the binoculars and saw that he was definitely a good buck, about 18 inches wide with long tines, but he had pretty short brows, and I lost interest in him at that point. I have no reservations about taking a good 8-point, but he’s got to have good brow tines, and this one simply didn’t.

I watched the nice 8-point bully the smaller buck out of the picture, and eventually all of the deer disappeared into the woods. For the next half-hour, I could hear several chases going on, and I just knew my night wasn’t quite over. At about 6:15 p.m., a young doe made her way under my stand and fed without detecting me. Suddenly I could hear the unmistakable sound of heavy antlers working a tree over. I slowly turned to see a tree swaying back and forth on the hill just above me. I couldn’t quite see the deer, but I could tell he was good. I hoped he would smell the doe and come to investigate. As luck would have it, the doe let out a soft grunt, and the mature buck responded immediately and came to check her out. As the buck entered the scene I must have been impressed because I grabbed my bow and put my release on the string. I counted at least five points on his left side, and I was sure he had the same on the right. Still, the tine length wasn’t impressive, even though he had heavy beams and a good spread. Once again I made the decision not to take a shot, and I let him walk out of sight.

Waiting for a true trophy is frustrating at times. I know I need to stay the course, and it will pay off in the end. I passed a lot of bucks over the last two years because they were “marginal,” and I know that’s why I’m seeing so many good bucks this year. Somehow I need to hold off on taking one of the really nice bucks while wating for a big-time trophy. Both bucks probably scored in the 120’s, but I know there is a 150+ out there, and another heavy buck that’s in the 140s. A little more than two weeks to go, so I have to be patient.

Does/Fawns Observed: 8
Bucks Observed: 5 (3 18-month, 2 shooters – 8 pt. & apx. 10 pt.)

October 30, 2008

Location: Secret Spot
Entry/Exit Times: 6:45 a.m. / 9:30 a.m.
Weather: 29 degrees, sunny, wind calm, barometer 30.48 – rising
Moon Phase: waxing crescent – 3%

It just never turned out to be the morning I was hoping for. The weather was perfect and the wind finally subsided, but the bucks were nowhere to be found. Still, I saw plenty of doe activity and when the bucks start chasing, I should be in a pretty good location.

It would have been a great day for an all-day sit, but I had to get to the office to work on a couple of reports. I just can’t get it out of my head that there is likely some midday activity where I’m hunting, and I feel like I’m missing out by not being there. I doubt I can do it tomorrow, but it’s likely that Saturday I’ll be on stand all day. I’m still looking forward to the evening hunt tonight though. For some reason it seems like the tables have turned and evenings are suddenly better than mornings.

Does/Fawns Observed: 12
Bucks Observed: 1 (4-point)

October 29, 2008

Location: Secret Spot
Entry/Exit Times: 4:00 p.m. / 6:30 p.m.
Weather: 36 degrees, light snow, wind breezy 5-10 mph, barometer 30.12 – rising
Moon Phase: waxing crescent – 1%

What an amazing night for deer movement! I saw a ton of deer tonight, and there was steady movement the entire time that I was in my stand. Shortly after I was there, a nice shooter 8-point came by feeding and cruising for does. Nothing special, just a basic 8 with decent tine length, about 16 inches wide. He bumped a couple of does, but they blew him off. He vented his frustration by working over some saplings just above my location.

Other than the two small bucks that passed beneath me around 5:30 p.m., it was a doe and fawn parade. The good news is I didn’t get spotted or winded in my new stand location. I like how it feels, and I think if I hunt it religiously, it has a good chance of producing. I was hoping to see one of the real big bucks tonight, but it wasn’t to be. Either they weren’t moving, or they were simply in another location. Sometimes I forget that it’s a big world out there, and they could be anywhere.

I’m looking forward to tomorrow morning. It will be my first morning in this stand, and it is supposed to be cold and, dare I say it, calm! I’m so tired of the friggin wind I could scream. It will be nice to actually hear something coming.

Does/Fawns Observed: 18
Bucks Observed: 3

October 28, 2008

Location: Secret Spot
Entry/Exit Times: 6:30 a.m. / 9:15 a.m.
Weather: 37 degrees, overcast, windy – gusting to 20 mph, barometer 29.88 – rising
Moon Phase: waning crescent – 2%

Even though I knew the weather was going to be miserable, I had to give it a shot. It was cold and windy, and not much was in my favor. I climbed a nice poplar about 150 yards from where I saw the Ghost the previous evening, but it was pretty wide open, and I was concerned that I could be easily spotted. I booted at least one deer out on my way in, and a couple more walked under my stand in the dark. I hate it when that happens.

Shortly after daylinght, deer started making their way in. I saw quite a few deer, and in one case, two small bucks were chasing a couple of does together. All of the bucks I saw (four) were checking does, so they’re getting the itch. The most interesting thing was seeing the palmated 8-point right under my stand. I’m going to call him Moose from here on out as his antlers really look like miniature Moose antlers. I didn’t see any big bucks this morning, but I was happy to be out there stealing a couple of hours before the crazy weather kicks up. I’m thinking about setting a new stand just for the Ghost later today. The next 36 hours are supposed to be nasty, so that I would give the deer some time to settle back in after I’m in there making a ruckus.

 Check out this cool video I got on one of my cameras from yesterday afternoon.

Buck Scrap

Does/Fawns Observed: 11
Bucks Observed: 4 (Three yearlings, Moose 8-point)

October 25, 2008

Location: Knob Bench – South Face
Entry/Exit Times: 2:00 p.m. / 6:45 p.m.
Weather: 50 degrees, overcast, wind gusty 5-10 mph, barometer 29.80 – rising
Moon Phase: waning crescent – 5%

Due to the heavy rain, there was no morning hunt today. The rain was steady and cold until about 1:30 p.m., when the system finally made it’s way eastward. I did a little shooting shortly after the rain quit (switched to Montec G5 broadheads), then headed to the woods. I was on stand shortly after 2 p.m., but as the photo below shows, I should have been there an hour earlier.

At just after 1:30 p.m., Crabby walked right through my ambush point as I was still at home taking a few practice shots. It's not unusual for increased movement immediately after a major weather event, and in this case, the rain stopped just after 1:00 p.m.

The hunt ended up being pretty disappointing. Sometimes after a major weather system moves through, the hunting can be pretty good. The problem was the steady and sometimes gusty wind that followed the rain. That made the evening sit pretty miserable, and the fact that I only saw a button buck and 18-month old doe didn’t help.

At the end of the hunt, I decided to pull both of my trail cameras that were in the area so that I could move them to another spot on the property. Upon checking the photos when I got home, I saw that Crabby had moved through just prior to my arrival. Another near miss. It makes me think I may not be meant to get this deer, but then I remind myself that I wouldn’t even know he was there if it wasn’t for my cameras. Part of me says it may be worth moving one of my stands to the scrape location where I’m getting the best photos. Another part of me says it’s too early to panic, and just be patient with the areas I’m hunting. For now, I think I’ll just continue the way I have been, and simply wait for the big deer to start moving.

Nasty weather on the way the next few days. Dark of the moon will be here as well. Could mean dramatic changes.

Does/Fawns Observed: 2
Bucks Observed: 0

October 23, 2008

Location: Knob Bench – South Face
Entry/Exit Times: 3:30 p.m. / 7:00 p.m.
Weather: 54 degrees, sunny, wind steady and gusty, barometer 30.54 – rising
Moon Phase: waning crescent – 27%

The weather forecast wasn’t calling for steady wind, but that’s definitely what we got. For three plus hours I got battered by the wind, and didn’t see a deer until right at quitting time when a doe came through with two fawns. I was worn out, and actually didn’t feel like hunting for a while by the end. Of course, once I ate and relaxed a bit watching some television with my wife, I decided I needed to give it a try again in the morning. It’s time for a new spot though as I’ve put a lot of time in this stand, and I think I should give it a rest.

Does/Fawns Observed: 3
Bucks Observed: 0